Cloud will break out during the latter stage of the afternoon before showers dampen the city sporadically tonight.

Birmingham is set for the hottest day of the year on Friday.

Further rain is expected overnight, turning heavy for some, and it will be quite windy.

Some sunny spells, but heavy, frequent showers are likely through the day, and these will bring a risk of hail and thunder on Wednesday.

Temperatures will shoot upwards with Friday set to be warmest day of the week when the mercury hits 18C in the south-east of England - well above normal for the time of year.

Yet in the Med holiday resorts, temperatures on Friday will struggle to beat 17C.

Values will also rise to the mid-teens C in other parts of the country, but it won’t be wall-to-wall sunshine with blustery April showers and a brisk breeze slightly depressing temperatures in the far north and west.

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Despite the cloud cover, the mercury will still rise some degrees above average for the time of year.

It will be mostly fine for many parts of Britain on Thursday, with drier weather and sunny spells taking charge in the south-east by Friday through the weekend.

But rain will extend from north-eastern Scotland to north-west England, Ireland, west Wales to southwest England.

The change in conditions is down to high pressure becoming anchored over central-eastern Europe, while a broad trough extends over western areas of the continent, pumping a warm plume of air northwards towards the UK.

Maximum temperatures will also lift into the low 20s in parts of France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy.

Forecaster Katie Greening, of The Weather Channel, said: “Temperatures will be about 5C to 7C above average in a southeasterly airflow.

“Rain and cloud will dampen temperature anomalies over the British Isles, western France and northern Iberia but it will still be above the seasonal norm.”​